Printing press excess powder collector



March 25, 1969 A. Q. TESTONE PRINTING PRESS EXCESS POWDER COLLECTOR Sheet Filed Dec. 14. 1966 FIGZZ INVENTOR.

ANTHONY O. TESTONE ATTORNEYS.

March 25, 1969 A. Q. TESTONE 3,434,416

PRINTING PRESS EXCESS POWDER COLLECTOR Filed Dec. 14. 1966 FIG. 3

Sheet 4? of2 /67 f q ll /02 T iq ii Fla: 7

70, INVENTOR.

ANTHONY O. TESTONE BY A TTORNEYS.

U.S. Cl. 101-416 11 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A printing press which has means to dispense aerosolized powder on freshly printed material to accelerate drying is provided with a collector to collect excess airborne powder which ordinarily creates a maintenance and health problem.

This invention relates to an excess powder collector for use with printing presses such as an offset printing press In order to accelerate the speed of the printing press, it is conventional to provide the printing press with a means for dispensing aerosolized powder which falls freely onto the freshly printed material to accelerate drying. Experience has shown that about one-half of the dispensed powder remains airborne and never reaches the printed material. This airborne powder settles on the printing blanket, the frame of the printing press, the floor in the immediate vicinity of the printing press, clogs the air conditioning system, interferes with lubrication of the printing press, and creates a health problem to those in the vicinity of the printing press.

The excess powder collector of the present invention may be installed on existing equipment or may form a part of new equipment. The collector of the present invention includes a bottomless housing mounted around the dispensing nozzle. The housing is provided with a blower which transfers any excess airborne powder into a collection compartment. In the collection compartment, the airborne powder is separated from the air by means of charging the powder by ionization and collecting the charged powder particles on grounded plates.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel excess powder collector for use with printing presses.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an offset printing press having an excess powder collector for collecting and removing excess airborne powder intended to accelerate drying on freshly printed material.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an excess powder collector for an offset printing press which is simple, economical, reliable, and inexpensive.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a means for collecting and removing excess airborne powder utilized in association with printing presses to thereby minimize maintenance and health problems in connection with the excess airborne powder.

Other objects will appear hereinafter.

For the purpose of illustrating the invention, there is shown in the drawings a form which is presently preferred; it being understood, however, that this inevntion is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown.

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the present invention mounted on an offset printing press.

3,434,416 Patented Mar. 25, 1969 FIGURE 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 22 in FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a sectional view taken along the line 3-3 in FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 4-4 in FIGURE 3.

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of an alternate neg-ative grid.

FIGURE 6 is a sectional view taken along the line 66 in FIGURE 5.

FIGURE 7 is a partial elevation view of another embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to the drawing in detail, wherein like numerals indicate like elements, there is shown in FIGURE 1 a portion of an offset printing press designated generally as 10. The press 10 has side frames 12 and 14 which support the excess powder collector of the present invention. The collector includes a bottomless housing 16 having a front wall 18, a rear wall 20, a top wall 22, and end walls 24 and 26. The housing 16 is supported from the side frames 12 and 14 by means of horizontally disposed plates 40 and 42. Any other type of support for the housing 16 may be provided as desired.

As shown more clearly in FIGURE 1, the front wall 18 is provided with a movable window 44 received within guide channels 46 and 48. The window 44 is provided with a handle and adapted to be manually raised and lowered to facilitate access to the interior of the housing 16.

As shown more clearly in FIGURE 2, the press 10 includes a shaft 50 having a cam 52 mounted thereon. Rotation of shaft 50 is synchronized with operation of the press 10. Cam 52 is illustrative of a means for operat ng the dispensing function of powder to accelerate drying of the printed material. Thus, cam 52 actuates the cam follower rod 54 associated with a spray mechanism 56. A valve within mechanism 56 is controlled by rod 54.

Mechanism 56 is provided with an outlet conduit 58 which extends through an elongated horizontally disposed slot 60 in the end wall 24. Flexible rubber flaps 62 are provided to close the remainder of the slot 60 except for the portion immediately adjacent the conduit 58.

Conduit 58 terminates in a conventional nozzle 64. A conduit 66 is provided and coupled to the nozzle 64 to facilitate a downward cone dispersion of aerosolized powder to accelerate drying of printed matter on the sheet material 68.

A substantial portion of the aerosolized powder remains airborne and does not settle on the sheet material 68. In this regard, the airborne powder is of particle sizes less than 100 microns. This excess powder is removed from the chamber within housing 16 by way of a blower or fan 70. The outlet conduit 72 of blower extends through a corresponding sized hole in the end wall 26 so that the excess powder and air are discharged into a collection compartment 74.

Collection compartment 74 is defined by end wall 26 of the housing 16 and a housing 76 hingedly connected thereto by means of a piano hinge 78. Housing 76 is re tained in the closed position illustrated in FIGURES l and 2 by means of latches 80. The bottom wall of housing 76 is provided with an air discharge aperture 82.

Collection plates 84 and 85 are provided within the compartment 74. Plate 84 is supported by the housing 76. Plate 85 is supported by the wall 26. The plates 84 and 85 are grounded. Negatively charged grids 86 are supported within the compartment 74 between the plates 84 and 85.

The parallel grids 86 are supported from a rectangular electrically conductive frame 87 by means of springs 90. The frame 87 is supported from the plate 85 by a plurality of studs 88 and 89. Studs 88 and 89 are made from electrically non-conductive materials such as plexiglass. The grids 86 are Nichrome wire. The springs 90 perferably have a tension of about one pound.

As shown more clearly in FIGURE 4, a switch '92 is supported by the wall 26 and responsive to opening and closing of the compartment 74 due to rotation of the housing 76 about the hinge 78. Switch 92 is coupled to a high voltage power supply. A potential of approximately 15 kv. is coupled to ground and to the grids 86 from the power supply 94 by way of electrical conduit 99 and frame 87. The power supply 94 may be a typical voltage doubler circuit preferably provided with a current limiter and a current drain responsive to opening of switch 92. In this manner, as soon as the compartment 74 is ex posed by opening the housing 76, switch 92 opens so that there will be no danger to personnel seeking to clean the plates 84 and 85 or adjust the grid 86.

In FIGURES 5 and 6, there is illustrated an alternative arrangement for the negative grid comprising a rectangular frame 96. A plurality of one-eighth inch diameter tubes 97 are vertically supported in parallel arrangement by the frame 96. At spaced points therealong, each tube 97 is provided with radially outwardly directed Monel points 98 extending in opposite directions. Frame 96 may be supported in the same manner as frame 87.

The operation of the thusly described excess powder collector is as follows:

Sheet material 68 is printed by the press 10. In order to facilitate rapid drying, powder is dispersed from a nozzle 64 in synchronized relationship with the operation of the press 10. Approximately one-half of the dispensed powder remains airborne. The remaining airborne particles are removed from within the housing 16 by way of blower 70 and discharged into the collection compartment 74.

The powder entering compartment 74 is charged by ionization generated by the negatively charged grids 86. The negatively charged powder therefore collects as a layer on the grounded plates 84 and 85 due to the presence of the electrostatic field between said plates and the negatively charged grid 86. Clean air is discharged through aperture 82 and returned to the atmosphere. The plates 84 and 85 may be periodically cleaned by scraping after first having access to the compartment 74 by pivoting the housing 76 about the hinge 78. As soon as the housing 78 is pivoted, switch 92 shuts off power to the power supply 94 so that there will be no danger to personnel. As illustrated, the housing 16 has a length corresponding to the width of the printing press 10. Some printing presses are sufiiciently wide so as to require two of the spray nozzle 64. In that case, the printing press would be provided with two of the collectors of the present invention coupled end to end.

It is often desirable to pivot the nozzle 64 in a horizontal plane so as to adjust the position of the dispersion cone. This is readily accomplished by raising the window 44 and manually adjusting the position of nozzle 64. The position of nozzle 64 is visible through the transparent window. Pivoting of the nozzle 64 is accommodated by the slot 60 and the end wall 24.

If it is considered undesirable to periodically clean the plates 84 and 85, the excess powder collector of the present invention may be structurally interrelated in FIGURE 7 and designated generally as 10'. The collector 10' is identical with the one described above except as will be made clear hereinafter. Accordingly, corresponding elements having primed numerals are shown in FIGURE 7.

In FIGURE 7, the blower 70 is connected to the aperture 82 by a conduit 100. Hence, the blower 70' is outside of the housing 16. The discharge from the blower 70 is connected to a vented tank. At periodic intervals, a vibrator 102 on the housing 76' is activated. Powder collecting on the plates 84' and 85' is shaken loose and withdrawn from the collection compartment by way of the conduit and the blower 70. Such powder will be discharged into the vented tank. Otherwise, the embodiment illustrated in FIGURE 7 is identical with that described above.

The particularly powder or the method of spraying forms no part of the present invention and a variety are commercially available. For example, wet and dry oflset spray powder is commercially available from Ortman- McCaine Company of Chicago, Ill.

The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof and, accordingly, reference should be made to the appended claims, rather than to the foregoing specification as indicating the scope of the invention.

It is claimed:

1. An excess powder collector comprising a bottomless housing, means on said housing for facilitating communication of a powder source with a nozzle disposed within the housing, blower means supported by the housing and having its intake communicating with the interior of the housing, a separating compartment alongside said housing, said blower means having a discharge communieating with said compartment, separator means in the compartment for separating powder from air received in the compartment from said blower means, said separator means including a grid and at least one plate spaced from the grid, electrical means coupled to said grid for negatively biasing said grid with respect to said plate.

2. A collector in accordance with claim 1 wherein said grid is disposed between a pair of grounded plates, and said compartment having an opening for discharging air to the environment, and means for providing access to the interior of said compartment for facilitating removal of powder collected on said plates.

3. A collector in accordance with claim 1 including means on a wall thereof for providing access into the interior.

4. A collector in accordance with claim 3 wherein said access means is a movable transparent window.

5. A collector in accordance with claim 1 wherein said grid includes Nichrome wires supported by springs from a frame.

6. A collector in accordance with claim 1 wherein said grid includes tubular members having sharp points extending radially outwardly therefrom at spaced points therealong.

7. A collector in accordance with claim 1 wherein said compartment is comprised of a housing pivotably coupled to said first-mentioned housing.

8. A collector in accordance with claim 1 wherein said compartment communicates directly with the interior of said housing, said blower means having its inlet communicating with said compartment, and means associated with said compartment for periodically and selectively vibrating said separator means.

9. In a printing press comprising a press frame, a bottomless housing supported by the frame, nozzle means in the housing for discharging powder downwardly through the open bottom of the housing to accelerate drying of printed matter on a sheet material being processed by the press, a collection compartment, blower means associated with the housing for transferring excess airborne powder from within said housing to said collection compartment, said blower means having its inlet obove the lower edge of said housing, separator means in the compartment for separating the powder from air, said separator means including a negatively biased grid interposed between and spaced from a pair of grounded 6 plates, and said compartment having means for permitting 2,766,718 /1956 Ball 101-416 XR discharge of air to the environment. 2,867,287 1/1959 Armstrong 55-150 XR 10. In a press in accordance with claim 9 wherein said 2,922,883 1/1960 Giaimo. compartment is supported by said housing, said blower 3,046,716 7/ 1962 Rodger 55-152 means being supported by said housing and communicat- 5 3,053,180 9/1962 Doyle 101-416 ing said compartment with the interior of said housing. 3,174,263 3/1965 Brandt 55-1 12 11. In a printing press in accordance with claim 9 in- 1,578,935 3/1926 Stickney 197-18 6 cluding a powder source outside said housing, said source 2,097,233 10/1937 Meston 41-1 being connected to the nozzle means by a conduit extend- 2,486,877 11/ 1949 Ransburg et a1 118-326 ing through an aperture in a wall of said housing, and 10 2,703,551 3/ 195 5 Daniels 118-326 means synchronized with operation of the press for con- 3,167,012 1/196 5 Claybourn 101-416 trolhng flow through said conduit. FOREIGN PATENTS References Cited 719,239 12/ 1954 Great Britain. 7 66 5 *L PATENTSSS 153 XR 15 ROBERT E. PULFREY, Primary Examiner.

2,007,928 7/ 1935 Harding 3 13 33 XR C. D. CROWDER, ASSISILIIZI Exammer.

2,242,182 5/ 1941 McCann.

2,280,240 4/1942 Kathe 118-6218 XR 2,508,134 5/1950 Andersen 55-112 -112, 151, 152, 385; 118-308, 326

2,651,992 9/ 1953 Sauberlich 101-416 

